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It’s not the weekend yet for Georgia legislators. It was a full day at the Capitol and we’re in for another full day tomorrow, with a rare in-session Friday.
Here are 4 things that happened at the Georgia Capitol today that you should know:
1. The House passed a bill to expand Georgia Supreme Court by two justices. [The bill would allow Gov. Nathan Deal to appoint the two new justices as early as this summer.]
2. The Georgia House is set Friday to approve a record $23.7 billion state budget for the upcoming year. [This budget could mean the largest pay raises 200,000 teachers and state employees have seen since the Great Recession.]
3. House Speaker David Ralston, R-Blue Ridge, calls for an end to "mystery groups," funded by what's commonly called "dark money." [In Georgia, the most effective of these groups come from the political right, including the various tea party groups.]
4. Though Gov. Nathan Deal has endorsed Republican candidate Jeb Bush in the past, he doesn't seem quite ready to wholeheartedly endorse the Floridian ahead of the March 1 primary. [The reason centers on the exhausting regional battle over water rights that has divided Georgia, Florida and Alabama for more than two decades.]
5. A bill that would let voters in DeKalb and Fulton decide whether to pay up to an additional half-percent sales tax for MARTA took a step forward in the Senate. [The next step is for the Rules Committee to schedule a floor vote in the Senate.]
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